Compositions applied to the skin prior to shaving known in the art generally seek to prepare the skin to receive a razor, providing lubrication and reducing friction to prevent irritation or cutting of the skin. With respect to preparations designed for electric shaving, typically, these compositions have the disadvantage of leaving the skin feeling greasy or oily, which is uncomfortable and unpleasant to the user.
When consumers use a pre-shave product in conjunction with an electric razor, they can sense the friction between the skin and the razor head(s). Friction can lead to uncomfortable skin irritation. But more importantly, friction between the razor head and skin will distort skin in front of the razor causing it to “bunch up” or create “a wave.” This effectively changes the angle of the razor head to the beard hair being cut and thereby greatly reduces the efficiency of the shaving process.
Many have attempted to increase the lubricity of pre-shave compositions by including high oil contents therein. These compositions have the typical drawbacks of high-oil vehicles, namely leaving a residue of oil on the skin, causing the skin to feel oily or greasy, which is unpleasant or uncomfortable to the user and may require additional treatment to the skin, such as washing or wiping with an oil-reducing toner to remove any oily residue.
To reduce these undesirable effects, some pre-shave compositions incorporate plate-form powders, such as talc. Plate-form powders have the characteristic of adhering to the skin or electric razor. Other pre-shave compositions incorporate globular powders. EP Application No. 0 385 312 A2 employs globular powders, such as nylon, polystyrene, polyethylene, and polyester, which are spherical in shape. Spherical powders have a ball bearing like effect unlike plate-like powders. Globular powders are dispersed in a high alcohol vehicle, and hence, the composition must be shaken prior to use to mix the contents. While these pre-shave compositions assist in improving lubricity and reducing oil residue, there is room for improvement. One deficiency with solely focusing on lubricity is that there is not a direct correlation between improved lubricity and closeness of shaving.
What is needed is a pre-shave skin composition that provides enhanced lubricity without having an oily feeling and/or leaving an oily residue. It would be beneficial if the pre-shave skin composition were able to have a low oil content. It would also be beneficial if the pre-shave skin composition were to provide an effective, efficient and pleasing shaving experience to the user.